Ford Increases Production of Fiesta in Germany

The market for subcompacts is booming in Europe, so much so that Ford has increased production of the popular Fiesta at its Cologne, Germany, plant, adding extra weekend shifts and increasing yearly output to 1,850 units.As Europe's best-selling compact, the Fiesta will break the 16 million unit mark this month. The model, which originally went on sale back in 1976, is currently in its seventh generation. There are currently 4,000 workers at the Cologne plant, and despite the slight increase in production, Ford has no plans to increase that number.Since the plant produces less than 2,000 units a year, there have been talks of moving production of the Ford Fiesta to another European plant, though no plan has been announced. Barb Samardzich, COO for Ford of Europe, told Automobilwoche that the plant needs to improve its flexibility when producing the Fiesta and make production costs more competitive.Here in the U.S., the Ford Fiesta remains one of the top choices for subcompact vehicles, and with the launch of the Fiesta 1-Liter, sales are expected to rise. We had the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the newest model, and we were pleasantly surprised. "We drove the Fiesta 1-Liter through canyon roads, highways, city streets, and came away with the thought that the newest Fiesta offers a good alternative to expensive hybrids without sacrificing on performance," we commented during our drive.The new Ford Fiesta is set to hit the European market in 2017, and unless things change at the Cologne plant, production may very well take place somewhere else.Source: Automotive News Europe (Subscription Required)

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